The Measurement of Money

Supply

Outline Preface 1. What is Money?

History of Jamaican Money 2. Functions of Money Medium of Exchange Unit of Account Store of Value Features of Money 3. Money Supply Standard Measurements of Money Supply Country Variations Bank of Jamaica Federal Reserve System Bank of England Reserve Bank of New Zealand 4. Summary GLOSSARY OF TERMS

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PREFACE In modern societies, money plays a significant role in almost everything. Nonetheless, when there is too much money around, it can do more harm than good for an economy. Some economists argue that if the money supply is growing faster than the rate at which output and income are growing, then this will result in an increase in prices, which will lead to a fall in people’s standard of living. For that reason, it is important that the authorities place special emphasis on the control of money supply. In order to control the money supply, the monetary authorities must measure the amount of money within the country at regular intervals. This pamphlet provides an explanation of the procedure involved in determining the amount of money within an economy at a point in time. Section one provides a definition of money and an overview of the history of the present monetary system. The functions and features of money are addressed in section two. In section three, the components of money supply from a theoretical and an empirical perspective will be examined. Included in this section is a presentation of the Bank of Jamaica’s (BOJ’s) monetary aggregates, which should provide a better appreciation of the money supply data recorded in BOJ’s statistical publications. Additionally, there are examples of the definitions employed by a number of other central banks to measure their money supply. The final section provides a brief summary and a glossary of terms that are typewritten in bold italics for easy reference.

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THE MEASUREMENT OF MONEY SUPPLY

1. What is Money?

Money can be defined as any medium which facilitates the exchange of goods and

services between people. Exchange has taken on different forms throughout history,

starting with the barter system in the earliest centuries, where commodities were directly

exchanged for each other. During the barter era, people would trade the things they had,

for the things they needed, for example pigs for fabric. Barter suffered from the major

shortcoming of dependence on a “double coincidence of wants (the pig farmer needing

fabric finding a weaver needing pigs and in roughly the same quantities for exchange).

Generally desired commodities therefore came to serve as intervening means of

exchange. (If oxen are generally accepted, then the pig farmer can exchange pigs for oxen

and use oxen to purchase textiles).

By social preference, different countries adopted the use of individual items as a standard

for the exchange of goods and services. Convenience required that such commodities

should have the characteristics of durability (unlike rock salt) divisibility (unlike live

oxen) and relative scarcity (unlike leaves in a tropical rainforest). In this context, precious

metals standardized by weight and then coinage came to be used as currency.

Metal coins were used by the Chinese as early as 400 B.C. These were made of bronze,

gold and silver. Throughout the 15th century, in the New World, there were other forms

of primitive money, such as copper and cacao beans used by the Aztecs. As late as the

19th century, standard items such as cowrie shells and gold nuggets were used in Ghana

and India and iron kisi pennies in West Africa. Other forms of commodity money,

included tally sticks, ivory and whale’s teeth.

By the end of the 19th century, there was widespread use of precious metals, which had

replaced primitive commodity monies. These metals were used in the minting of coins,

which became the standard form of money. Arising from concerns about the bulkiness

and safety of transporting these precious coins, traders normally entrust them to

goldsmiths in exchange for a paper receipt. These receipts represented a form of

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commodity money as they were fully backed by gold and other metals. At the beginning

of the 20th century1, as the credibility of these receipts gained momentum, they became

widely accepted as means of exchange. As time evolved, this form of paper money was

replaced by another form called fiat money, which remains in use at present. Although

fiat paper money has no intrinsic value, they will be accepted as means of payment, as

long as people are confident that the government will defend their value. The government

protects the value of its currency by limiting the rate of growth of supply to an

approximation with the growth of goods and services within the economy. On that

account, the monetary authorities have sole responsibility for issuing notes and coins

within countries. Without careful monitoring, there may be too much money chasing too

few goods, thus placing upward pressure on prices, that is inflation. Excessive inflation

undermines business planning and leads to a decline in living conditions.

Another form of paper money introduced in the early 20th century were bank deposits.

These deposits were owned by banks and given to depositors in exchange for commodity

money, such as precious metals. Like fiat money, the cost of producing these paper notes

is relatively small compared with the value of the commodities they represent and

production is also restricted. A major advantage of these deposits is that the users have

the ability to write cheques of variable denominations. The rapid pace of technological

advancements during the latter part of the 20th century has resulted in the widespread use

of automated debit and credit cards, which are reducing the role of paper money in many

modern societies.

History of Jamaican Money

The earliest settlers in Jamaica, the Tainos or Amerindians, traded in commodities such

as beads made of stone and wooden or clay idols, called zemis. Another form of

commodity money was the gold disc, which was used as a bride price, similar to the

African tradition. However, with the arrival of Columbus and other European settlers in

the 15th century, European coins were introduced to Jamaica. The first coin to be

circulated was the copper coin called maraveda. Then in the 17th century, the Spanish

1 This is often referred to as the era of the gold standard.

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silver dollar called a piece of eight, began to circulate in Jamaica and remained in popular

use, alongside the British silver coin called anchor money, which was introduced to the

British colonies in 1825. The Spanish currency was abandoned in 1839, when the British

money was declared the official currency of the colony.

Jamaican nickel coins, known as pennies and halfpennies were introduced in 1869,

followed by the farthing in 1880. The farthing was last issued in 1952, but the pennies

and halfpennies remained in circulation until 1969, when they were replaced by the

decimal system of currency.

Alongside the issuance of coins were various forms of Jamaican paper monies, also

called banknotes. These banknotes were first introduced in the mid-19th century, when

the London-based Colonial Bank issued the first private banknotes, followed by other

banks, namely the Planters Bank, the Bank of Nova Scotia, the Royal Bank and the

Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce. These were followed by the Government of

Jamaica (GOJ) banknotes issued in denominations of 5-shilling and 10-shilling in 1920.

Then in 1940, the Board of Commissioners of Currency declared the GOJ, the sole issuer

of banknotes on the island, after which came the issuance of the 1-pound and 5-pound

notes in 1942. These were replaced by Bank of Jamaica notes in 1961, issued in

denominations of 5-shilling, 10-shilling, 1-pound and 5-pound. As with the Jamaican

coins, the use of sterling denominated banknotes was discontinued in 1969, following the

launch of the current decimal system, which uses Jamaican dollars and cents.

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2. Functions of Money

The textbook definition states that money satisfies three basic functions. These are as

follows:

a) It acts as a medium of exchange

b) It acts as a unit of account and

c) It acts as a store of value.

Medium of Exchange

As a medium of exchange, the item must be readily accepted as payment for goods

purchased or services rendered. Recalling the example of the barter system, money

therefore solves the problem of double coincidence of wants. As such, money frees up

resources to be used in their most productive capacity. In addition, without money,

exchange is limited to only two parties, while money allows for trade among many

groups. Thus it can be said to smooth the flow of goods and services within and among

countries. Money has therefore been purported to be one of the greatest socially evolved

phenomena.

Unit of Account

Defining money as a unit of account means that the value of assets and commodities is

given in terms of money. In this case, it provides a reference for the pricing of

commodities and therefore a more efficient exchange system. Money also provides a

standard on which to measure the level of profitability of business ventures. As a unit of

account, money can be compared with other standards such as the metric system, which

is used to measure weights and distance. To illustrate the importance of this function, let

us examine a barter economy. Assuming that only three commodities are traded, fish, rice

and soap, then each commodity has two prices, for example, the price of fish in terms of

rice and the price of fish in terms of soap. In that case, each person in the society would

have to remember at least three prices. By extension, if ten commodities are traded then

each person must remember at least forty-five prices2. Imagine the confusion involved in

2 Formula for calculating the number of prices under a barter system is as follows. {N(N-1)}/2, where N represents the number of commodities being traded.

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shopping in this environment where individuals are faced with such a range of prices. In a

monetary system however, each item has a unique price, in which case the number of

prices quoted is equal to the number of commodities traded.

Store of value

As a store of value, money allows individuals to save a portion of their present income

for consumption in the future. In other words money represents a store of wealth from

one time period to another. There are also other assets, such as property and jewelry, that

function as a store of value. These other assets may have the advantage of increasing in

value over time, while money in the form of notes and coins usually pays no interest and

in times of rapid price increases, it loses value. Notwithstanding, money has the

advantage of being readily accepted as a means of payment. This implies that money is a

very liquid asset. Therefore, the use of money eliminates the cost of converting these

other assets into a form which is generally accepted in the exchange of goods and

services.

Features of Money

For an object to serve efficiently as money, it should possess the following features:

1) It must be widely accepted as a means of payment.

2) It must be divisible, that is, it must exist in different denominations, for

example $1, $5, $10 and $500.

3) It must be easily identified.

4) It must not be easily duplicated or counterfeited (i.e. it must be relatively scarce).

5) It must be easily transported.

6) It must be durable, allowing it to last for very long periods.

Bank deposits, which are easily transferable, meet these criteria even more efficiently in

modern economies. Deposits have consequently become the largest component of money

supply.

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3. Money Supply

This section examines the more frequently used measures of money supply. Money

supply is the total stock of assets that are generally acceptable as media of exchange

within an economy at a particular time. A number of items may qualify as media of

exchange. The decision as to what items are to be included in the money supply remains

an issue in economic debates. There is no universally applicable empirical definition of

money supply and the choice may vary dependent on what issue is being examined.

There are varying degrees of liquidity or ‘moneyness’, depending on how easily an asset

can be converted into other assets. With the most liquid assets being notes and coins

established as medium of exchange by legal fiat, “moneyness” of other assets depends on

how easily they may be converted to notes and coins. Furthermore, as the degree of

liquidity falls, the distinction between monetary assets and other financial assets

becomes increasingly blurred. Therefore, in this context, the International Monetary Fund

(IMF) has sought to outline standards for the measurement of the amount of money in an

economy.

Standard measurements of Money Supply

According to the IMF’s manual, money supply is measured as the combined deposit

liabilities of the banking system and the currency liabilities of the central bank, both held

by households, firms, nonprofit institutions and all public sector entities outside of the

central government. In this official or standard representation of money supply, there are

three monetary aggregates delineated; M0, M1 and M2.

M0 includes only currency in the hands of the public, banks’ statutory reserve deposits

held at the central bank and banks’ cash reserves. This aggregate represents the monetary

liabilities of the central bank and is usually referred to as the monetary base or reserve

money.

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The second aggregate M1, comprises currency held outside the banking system and the

current account deposit liabilities of commercial banks held for transactive purposes.3 It

may also include some foreign currency deposits that are used for domestic transactions.

This definition implies that only assets that are directly used in making payments should

be considered as money. It should be noted that although most current account deposits

do not attract interest, they provide a convenient and safe alternative to cash as a means

of payment.

The M2 aggregation of money supply seeks to broaden the range of liquid assets to

include some interest earning items, such as savings deposits and fixed or time deposits.

This broad monetary aggregate, M2, comprises M1 plus short-term (usually a year and

under) savings and time deposits, certificates of deposit, foreign currency transferable

deposits and repurchase agreements. Although some of these assets are not readily

accepted as payment for goods and services, the transaction cost associated with their

conversion is relatively small. For example, with the introduction of automated banking

machines, holders of savings accounts no longer have to go directly to the bank to make

withdrawals thus the burden of converting savings balances to cash is minimised. As

such, savings accounts are now used in a similar manner as current accounts in many

societies, thereby enhancing depositors’ capacity and convenience in undertaking

expenditure. With respect to time deposits, since these deposits can be withdrawn on

short notice, they also provide some degree of liquidity to depositors. It should also be

noted that there is an interest penalty associated with the pre-mature closure of these

accounts. However, as long as the benefit of breaking these arrangements outweighs the

cost, they do represent an alternative to cash and current accounts.

In some countries, broad aggregation of money has been extended beyond M2 to include

some less liquid financial assets. These aggregates add to M2, long-term foreign-

3 The IMF states that, while some non-bank institutions are involved in the clearing process, for ease of comparison, current account balances held in these institutions are not normally taken into account when measuring narrow money. 4 The IMF states that, while some non-bank institutions are involved in the clearing process, for ease of comparison, current account balances held in these institutions are not normally taken into account when measuring narrow money.

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currency time deposits, travellers’ cheques, short-term bank notes and money market

mutual funds. Although these instruments are primarily used to promote long-term

savings, they can be easily converted into currency or demand deposits at little cost. As

such, they are said to facilitate the exchange of goods and services among individuals.

The primary monetary aggregates outlined above all satisfy the liquidity criteria. While

some assets could not be directly employed as payment for goods and services, the

conversion costs were minimal. There are other less liquid financial assets, which satisfy

the store of value criterion and their inclusion allows for broader measurements, such as

M3 and M4. (See Table 1 below).

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Table 1

This table presents an outline of the standard definitions of money supply. It is presented in accordance

with the IMF’s Manual on Monetary and Financial Statistics. Each monetary aggregate is ranked according

to the degree of liquidity it provides. Table 1

Standard measures of the money supply

Measure Definition Comments

M0

Currency in the hands of the public

plus reserves held on behalf of

commercial banks.

Often referred to as the monetary

base or reserve money. Controlled by

the monetary authority/central bank.

M1 Notes and coins outside of the

banking system plus current account

balances, held for transactions.

Most commonly used definition.

Readily accepted for payment of

goods and services. Some of these

assets may attract a minimal interest

payment. May include foreign

currency deposits that are directly

used for domestic transactions.

M2 M1 plus short-term time and savings

deposits, foreign currency

transferable deposits, certificates of

deposit and repurchase agreements.

Minimal cost of conversion to cash.

Close substitutes for current

accounts.

M3 M2 plus travellers’ cheques, short

term bank notes, long term foreign

currency time deposits and money

market mutual funds.

The components of M3 vary between

countries. Emphasis is placed on

degree of liquidity or ease of

conversion to cash.

M4 or L M3 plus treasury bills, negotiable

bonds and pension funds.

Very broad money, which is usually,

considered a measure of fairly liquid

assets. Generally includes most of the

instruments traded in money markets.

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Country Variations

The determination of which items are to be included in the measurement of money supply

is related to the level of financial liberalisation, or sophistication in a country. As an

economy advances, there evolves an increasing range of monetary and other financial

instruments and it becomes increasingly difficult to establish a distinction between them.

Therefore periodic revisions have to be made to the compilation of monetary statistics.

Recall that a main purpose for measuring the money supply is to facilitate analysis of its

growth relative to other macroeconomic targets including inflation and economic

growth. For example, if a central bank operating in a highly developed financial market,

does not monitor some financial instruments, particularly those which are considered

relatively illiquid, it could be surprised by changes in consumer demand and a higher

than expected inflation out-turn.

Accordingly, varying measures are used by different central banks to represent money

supply. The alternative treatments of certain financial assets, such as securities, foreign

currency deposits and other less liquid assets will also be addressed. The analysis will

focus primarily on the operations at the Bank of Jamaica (BOJ), followed by an outline of

the measures employed at the Federal Reserve System (Fed), the Bank of England (BOE)

and the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ). For this purpose, the standards outlined

in the IMF’s manual will be used as a point of reference.

The Bank of Jamaica (BOJ)

The BOJ publishes the monetary aggregates in its monthly Statistical Digest. This

publication contains data on the Bank’s three primary monetary aggregates, namely base

money or reserve money, narrow money and broad money, presented as M0, M1 and

M2. The first chapter of the Digest, entitled Monetary Authorities allows for the

computation of these variables. In addition, the Bank publishes a comparative summary

of these aggregates on the first page of its monthly Economic Statistics. (See Appendix)

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There are two separate figures for M1 and M2, one including foreign currency deposits

and the other excluding foreign currency deposits5. These aggregates will be referred to

as M1 and M2 and M1J and M2J respectively and they are published on Tables 1 and 1a

entitled Monetary Survey. On both tables, M1/M1J data is shown in column 9 entitled

Total, which represents the combination of currency with the public and demand deposits

(adj.). Here demand deposits represents commercial banks’ holdings of balances for

private institutions and individuals plus bankers’ drafts outstanding, minus cash items in

the process of collection. To arrive at a value for M2/M2J, simply add the values in

columns 9 and 12. Here M2/M2J comprises M1/M1J plus time and savings deposits

referred to as quasi money. (See Table 2 below) Table 2

MONETARY SURVEY 1 / J$mn.

DOMESTIC CREDIT MONEY SUPPLY QUASI-MONEY To To Other

Foreign Public To Financial Currency Demand Other End of Assets Sector Private Institutions with the Deposits Time Savings Items Period (net) (net) Sector (net) Total Public (adj.) Total Deposits Deposits Total (net) 1998 Jan. 33,901.4 45,763.7 42,727.6 -4,646.2 83,845.1 11,141.5 16,532.6 27,674.1 16,022.6 50,498.1 66,520.7 23,551.7 Feb. 35,536.0 45,589.7 42,741.7 -3,667.6 84,663.8 11,331.0 15,074.1 26,405.1 16,302.4 50,861.5 67,163.9 26,630.8 Mar. 35,277.1 53,342.3 39,922.8 -6,618.4 86,646.7 10,620.3 15,170.3 25,790.6 16,912.0 50,254.6 67,166.6 28,966.6 Apr. 35,663.1 68,694.3 36,418.1 -11,559.4 93,553.0 10,945.0 15,359.7 26,304.7 17,779.6 51,309.0 69,088.6 33,822.8 May 35,148.7 67,209.7 35,954.6 -12,194.8 90,969.5 11,438.8 15,519.0 26,957.8 18,287.2 51,335.6 69,622.8 29,537.6 June 37,373.4 67,165.7 34,956.9 -13,080.9 89,041.7 11,174.0 16,625.7 27,799.7 17,482.0 51,221.6 68,703.6 29,911.8 July 37,563.4 64,758.6 35,276.4 -12,447.0 87,588.0 11,393.0 16,132.8 27,525.8 18,106.4 51,098.2 69,204.6 28,421.0 Aug. 38,867.0 70,928.6 34,977.3 -12,916.3 92,989.6 11,285.5 16,880.7 28,166.2 19,285.8 51,285.9 70,571.7 33,118.7 Sept. 38,661.3 72,410.6 35,668.3 -12,620.2 95,458.7 11,061.5 19,030.5 30,092.0 18,996.9 51,037.6 70,034.5 33,993.5 Oct. 36,754.4 83,167.2 34,554.2 -12,748.9 104,972.5 11,440.1 17,975.3 29,415.4 19,457.4 51,747.7 71,205.1 41,106.4 Nov. 37,284.6 79,834.2 35,162.8 -13,786.4 101,210.6 11,385.5 16,734.8 28,120.3 19,233.5 51,863.3 71,096.8 39,278.1 Dec. 36,759.7 88,930.3 34,126.6 -13,683.1 109,373.8 13,494.7 16,682.3 30,177.0 19,599.9 52,754.4 72,354.3 43,602.2 1999 Jan. 36,921.9 87,026.0 34,561.1 -11,228.2 110,358.9 12,338.5 17,553.1 29,891.6 19,446.6 52,645.5 72,092.1 45,297.1 Feb. 38,167.1 90,140.3 34,108.3 -11,282.6 112,966.0 12,476.9 17,621.9 30,098.8 19,649.1 53,041.0 72,690.1 48,344.2 Mar. 40,202.4 83,223.4 33,268.8 -9,533.2 106,959.0 12,431.5 17,875.0 30,306.5 19,939.9 53,365.9 73,305.8 43,549.1 Apr. 41,835.1 90,048.6 33,494.8 -10,294.9 113,248.5 12,847.1 18,488.1 31,335.2 19,672.2 55,072.3 74,744.5 49,003.9 May 42,182.5 92,915.7 28,962.7 -2,203.1 119,675.3 12,496.3 21,316.0 33,812.3 21,092.5 55,387.1 76,479.6 51,565.9 June 44,667.5 92,436.7 26,984.8 -2,462.4 116,959.1 12,593.1 19,444.1 32,037.2 20,385.1 55,511.9 75,897.0 53,692.4 July 41,633.6 98,186.3 27,607.7 -4,036.6 121,757.4 13,168.9 20,054.4 33,223.3 22,507.3 56,033.2 78,540.5 51,627.2 Aug. 42,661.0 101,668.4 27,633.4 -2,689.0 126,612.8 13,036.1 22,795.6 35,831.7 24,421.5 56,774.2 81,195.7 52,246.4 Sept.+ 42,907.7 99,035.2 27,331.6 -2,354.3 124,012.5 12,672.8 23,018.0 35,690.8 24,815.7 56,811.0 81,626.7 49,602.7 Oct.+ 42,210.1 101,095.1 28,446.5 -2,464.3 127,077.3 13,546.4 25,437.5 38,983.9 24,264.0 57,227.2 81,491.2 48,812.3 Nov.+ 40,885.1 103,568.7 28,035.7 -6,025.1 125,579.3 13,572.8 22,922.4 36,495.2 24,433.7 57,651.0 82,084.7 47,884.5 Dec.* 40,028.5 106,703.3 26,696.5 -5,816.2 127,583.6 18,164.0 22,446.7 40,610.7 23,672.5 57,908.2 81,580.7 45,420.7 2000 Jan.* 43,029.8 109,610.4 26,260.1 -5,460.3 130,410.2 14,169.1 23,428.4 37,597.5 24,643.1 59,307.4 83,950.5 51,892.0 1 / Assets and Liabilities include Local & Foreign Currency items. +Revised *Provisional

With respect to base money, this measure is published in Table 5 of the Digest, which is

entitled Monetary Base Indicators. The value for M0, which is presented in column 5

entitled Total, represents currency issued by the BOJ and the combined liabilities of the

5 People’s capacity to spend is a function of the availability of both local and foreign currencies. However, the central bank in pursuing its mandate of monetary stability seeks to preserve the value of the Jamaican dollar by managing the rate at which its total increases over time.

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BOJ to commercial banks, namely statutory cash reserves and current account balances6

of commercial banks held at Bank of Jamaica. Although the table presents the statutory

cash reserves of other financial institutions and building societies, they are not involved

in the clearing process, and therefore column 8 is not included in the measurement of

BOJ’s base money. (See Table 3 below) Table 3

BASE MONEY INDICATORS J$mn.

C O M M E R C I A L B A N K S S T A T U T O R Y C A S H R E S E R V E

Statutory End of Currency Cash Current FIA Building

Period Issue Reserve Account Total Institutions Societies Total

1996 Mar. 9,345 16,169 114 16,283 1,300 576 1,876 June 9,373 16,290 50 16,340 1,314 575 1,889 Sept. 9,421 16,308 167 16,475 1,239 662 1,901 Dec. 12,392 17,283 163 17,446 1,290 815 2,105

1997

Mar. 11,116 18,170 233 18,403 1,278 905 2,183 June 10,984 19,842 157 19,999 1,116 985 2,101 Sept. 10,980 19,818 273 20,091 1,102 976 2,078 Dec. 14,242 19,921 1 19,922 1,077 961 2,038

1998

Mar. 11,892 20,314 92 20,406 1,129 1,053 2,182 June 12,383 20,220 301 20,521 1,108 1,135 2,243 Sept. 12,275 20,167 99 20,266 1,122 1,372 2,494 Dec. 15,245 18,136 87 18,223 1,137 1,309 2,446

1999

Jan. 13,473 18,530 71 18,601 1,132 1,381 2,513 Feb. 13,558 16,639 61 16,700 1,137 1,400 2,537 Mar. 13,925 16,938 153 17,091 1,093 1,413 2,506 Apr. 14,104 17,417 20 17,437 988 1,259 2,247 May 14,067 15,866 142 16,008 957 1,332 2,289 June 13,871 15,655 229 15,884 942 1,468 2,410 July 14,229 15,670 389 16,059 912 1,522 2,434 Aug. 14,484 15,920 178 16,098 528 1,384 1,912 Sept. 14,252 15,920 82 16,002 530 1,190 1,720 Oct. 14,913 15,376 50 15,426 498 1,019 1,517 Nov. 14,773 15,410 357 15,767 510 1,011 1,521 Dec. 20,870 15,452 75 15,527 518 436 954

2000

Jan. 16,040 15,877 4 15,881 321 436 757 Feb. 15,307 15,508 370 15,878 304 435 739

The BOJ also considers more broadly defined monetary aggregates (including other

financial assets) for internal policy purposes.

The Federal Reserve System (Fed)

Over the decade of the 1990s, there have been numerous revisions to the money supply

definition employed by the Fed. The Fed employs three primary aggregates, namely, M1,

M2 and M3. M1 comprises assets such as currency held by the public, demand deposits,

6 The current account of the commercial banks comprises excess reserves and transaction balances. Data reflect credit balances only.

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travellers’ cheques issued by non-bank financial institutions and other checkable deposits

(OCDs)7. In defining its broader monetary aggregates, the Fed makes a distinction

between short term and long term securities and also the size of these assets. For

example, the M2 aggregate comprises M1 plus relatively small-denomination time

deposits (under US$100,000) including retail repurchase agreements (RPs), savings

balances and money market mutual funds. In the case of RPs, they possess cheque-

writing features, while mutual funds are similar to short-term time deposits because they

can be easily converted to cash.

The M3 aggregate includes M2 along with relatively large time deposits, RPs (overnight

and long-term over US$100,000) – both issued by all deposit-taking institutions,

Eurodollars (overnight and term) held by U.S. citizens in commercial banks worldwide

and all institutional money funds. The least liquid measure, L represents M3 plus

Treasury securities, commercial paper, corporate bonds, consumer credit and bank loans.

This latest aggregate is really a measure of the level of outstanding credit market debt of

the federal and non-federal sectors.

The Bank of England (BOE)

The latest revision to the BOE’s monetary statistics was conducted in 1998. The BOE

employs two primary measures of money supply, namely base money (M0) and broad

money (M4). The M0 definition is consistent with the standard measurement of base

money. The M4 measure comprises all sterling notes and coins and sterling deposits held

by the UK private sector other than monetary financial institutions (MFIs)8. Among

these deposits are commercial paper, bonds, certificates of deposit, liabilities arising from

repurchase agreements (repos) at British MFIs and sterling bank bills. In essence, all

other non-MFI private sector sterling liquid assets, not captured in the M0 definition, are

accounted for in the M4 measure.

7 ODCs consist of automatic transfer service accounts and negotiable order of withdrawals, credit union share accounts and current accounts at thrift institutions. 8 A new MFI sector was introduced in 1998 comprising the BOE, other banks and building societies.

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As a member of the European Union (EU), the BOE employs a third monetary aggregate

called M3H. This aggregate, which seeks to harmonise the definition of broad money

used throughout the EU, comprises M4 plus sterling and foreign currency deposits held

by British public entities held in monetary financial institutions in Britain, along with

private sector foreign currency deposits held in these institutions.

The Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ)

The RBNZ employs three primary measures of money supply, namely M1, M2 and M3.

The M1 aggregate includes notes and coins held by the non-bank public plus private

sector current account balances, all in New Zealand currency. The RBNZ does not

include government balances held in the New Zealand banking system in any of its

monetary aggregates. The components of M2 are M1 plus all other deposits that are

available on demand, whether business, or private deposits. Examples of these deposits

are savings deposits, overnight money and funding, which carry no break penalties. The

broadest monetary aggregate, M3 comprises M2 plus all banks’ term funding.10 There is

an additional aggregate, M3R or Resident M3, which includes M3 less New Zealand

dollar funding sourced from non-residents.

9 A repo is an asset (security) that allows the holder to issue it to another party in exchange for cash, on condition that the security will be returned when cash is repaid at a premium. 10According to the June, 1999 issue of the RBNZ’s Bulletin, term funding includes instruments called ‘Bonus Bonds’, that are issued by the Post Office Savings Bank. These bonds, which are similar to certificates issued by cash management trust do not bear interest, but participate in a monthly lottery that allocates the yield on the instrument as tax-free prizes.

17

This table provides a comparison of the monetary aggregates published by the four central banks mentioned

above.

Table 4

Current monetary indicators of selected monetary authorities M0 M1 M2 M3 M3R M3H M4

BOJ Currency plus

reserves of the

commercial

banks held at

the BOJ

MI/MIJ comprises

currency outside

banks plus current

account deposits of

the private sector.

M2/M2J comprises

M1/M1J plus

time deposits and

savings deposits of

the private sector.

M2 plus

commercial banks

capital account,

special debentures

and provisions for

loan losses.

FED Domestic notes and

coins in the hands

of the public plus

current account

deposits . OCDs

and travelers

cheques.

M1 plus

Small-denominated

repurchase

agreements and

time deposits.

Savings balances

and money market

mutual funds.

M2 plus

Large time

deposits, large

repurchase

agreements and

Eurodollars held by

US citizens.

BOE Domestic notes

and coin.

Reserves

M4 plus sterling

and foreign

currency deposits

held by British

public entities in

MFI’s in Britain

and private sector

foreign currency

deposits held in

these MFI’s.

Domestic notes and

coins, certificates of

deposit,

commercial paper,

bonds, repurchase

agreements and

Bank bills.

RBNZ

Domestic notes and

coins and current

account deposits.

M1 plus

all other private

deposits available

on demand, less

inter-institutional

and government

balances.

M2 plus

all other banks’

term funding minus

Government

deposits.

M3 less New

Zealand dollar

funding sourced

from non-residents.

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4. Summary

The behaviour of monetary aggregates is critical to the maintenance of economic

stability. Whereas an expansion in the money supply facilitates economic growth,

excessive increases in the rate of growth of money supply have an adverse effect on the

price level and the level of income in an economy. This calls for close monitoring of the

movement in money supply by the monetary authorities. In order for central banks to

control the money supply, they have to firstly, determine its components and then

measure these monetary aggregates at regular intervals. Economists have proposed a

functional definition of money, i.e. any object that is generally acceptable in facilitating

the exchange of goods and services. The emphasis here is on liquidity or the ease with

which an asset can be used for payment or converted into an accepted form for payment.

Central bankers around the world have employed measures that are unique to their

institutions and designed to provide more relevant estimates for their country’s

circumstances. Despite variations in the measurement of money supply, it is important

that consistency be maintained. Countries with fairly developed financial and money

markets tend to include a broader range of less liquid securities in their calculations,

while others confine their measurement to a more narrow range of highly liquid assets.

This underscores the point that only items that are deemed to have a relatively strong

actual or potential impact on people’s spending should be included in a country’s money

supply measurement.

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Appendix

BOJ’s money supply indicators as at July 1999

Measure Millions of J$

Base money = Currency Issue Commercial Banks Statutory Cash Reserves Current Account Total = M0 Local and Foreign Currency M1= Currency with the public Demand Deposits Total = M1 M2= M1 plus Quasi Money Time deposits Savings deposits Total = M2 Local Currency M1J= Currency with the public Demand Deposits Total = M1J M2J= M1 plus Quasi Money Time deposits Savings deposits Total = M2J

13871.1 15884.5

15655.4 229.1 45640.1 12834.2 18717.4 31551.6 74573.7 19628.2 54945.5 106125.3 12834.2 16043.6 28877.8 54416.5 13877.6 40539.0 83294.3

Source: Bank of Jamaica, “Economic Statistics”, July 1999

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Glossary of Terms Banking System: The banking system consist of commercial banks only as these

are the only institutions involved in the clearing process.

Current Account: A bank deposit that can be withdrawn at anytime without

notice. This is the most common type of bank account, on which deposits do not

usually earn interest.

Fiat Money: Legal tender which has value only because the issuing authority

declares that it is money and the public at large accepts it as such.

Financial Assets: A financial asset is something issued by an institutional unit,

(e.g. BOJ) that provides economic benefits, by (1) generating interest income or

net profits and (2) acting as a store of value. These benefits are created through a

formal/informal borrowing/lending relationship. Most common types of financial

assets are money and credit.

Liquid Asset: An asset is considered liquid if it can be easily and with little or no

loss converted to cash. The liquid assets of commercial banks in Jamaica include

notes and coins, short-term deposits at the Bank of Jamaica and any designated

GOJ security, usually maturing within 270 days.

Liquidity: The ease with which an asset can be exchanged for money.

Money: Anything that is generally accepted in exchange for goods and services.

(e.g. notes and coins). Hence money is said to be a medium of exchange. Money is

also used as a measure of, as well as a means of storing wealth.

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Money Supply: This is the stock of instruments or assets formally designated as

money in a particular economy. There are alternative measures of money supply

both within and between countries. In Jamaica, the measurements of money that

are calculated and published are:

M1: Notes and coins in circulation + Demand Deposits

M2: M1+ Time and savings deposits

Mutual Funds: Financial institutions which acquire funds by selling shares to

many individuals and use the proceeds to purchase diversified portfolios of stocks

and bonds. The pooling of funds therefore reduces the transactions costs involved

in the purchase of large blocks of stocks and bonds.

Quasi-Money: Also referred to as near money. This is an asset which is

transferable and which therefore can be used in the exchange of goods and

services, but has not achieved the monetary status of banknotes, coins and

cheques.

Repurchase Agreement (repo): The purchase of a security from a primary dealer

who agrees to buy back same at a specified rate and an agreed future date.

Securities: Legal documents giving title to property, or claim on income, for

example, bonds and stocks.

Statutory Cash Reserves: That portion of deposit liabilities of deposit-taking

institutions which by a statutorily based stipulation, must be held as interest free

deposits at the Central Bank.

22

Time deposit: A bank account based on a contractual arrangement between the

deposit taking institution and the depositor where both parties agree to a pre-

determined interest rate and maturity date, on which deposits earn interest and

premature withdrawals from which require advance notice.

23

List of References Bannock G, Baxter R.E. and Rees R (1993) The Penguin Dictionary of ECONOMICS. Penguin Books

Ltd. Baumol W and Blinder A (1998) Economics: Principles and Policy, 7th edition. The Dryden Press,

Harcourt. Brace College Publishers. Bank of England (1999) Monetary and Financial Statistics, May issue. Bank of Jamaica (1999) Economic Statistics, July issue and Statistical Digest, May issue. Federal Reserve System (1999) Federal Reserve Bulletin, June issue. Havrilesky T and Boorman J (1982) Money Supply, Money Demand and Macroeconomic Models, 2nd edition. Harlan Davidson Inc. Hoggarth G (1996) Introduction to Monetary Policy: Handbooks in Central Banking, no. 1 International Monetary Fund (1997) Manual on Monetary and Financial Statistics. Mishkin F (1999) Money, Banking and Financial Markets, 3rd edition. Harper Collins Publishers. Reserve Bank of New Zealand (1999) Financial Statistics, March issue.

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